Comments on: Secret Diary of a Female Petrolhead

By: Shreen

Shreen — Fri, 11 May 2012 13:30:00 +0000

In reply to Russell. Yeah, they're those scary big lumps of metal that seem to find bikers invisible. :/

By: Shreen

Shreen — Fri, 11 May 2012 13:28:40 +0000

I’m really glad I found this post, I can relate so much. I actually have a degree in engineering and was a professional engineer for a while. Having said that the academic skills you learn through a degree don’t directly translate into the practical nitty-gritty know-how you need to do things like rebuild engines.

I know how an engine works. My dissertations were both automotive based (one on an alternative to the poppet valve, another on crankshaft failures through excessive vibrations) … and yet the reality is knowing all that doesn’t help when you’re confronted with a huge lump of complex parts. Not everything looks like it does in the textbooks, and not all engines are the same as those I experimented on at uni.

I also can’t drive a car. Being a Londoner meant I never really needed to learn that skill. But I did get a motorbike licence because bikes are way more fun, cheaper to run than cars and can filter through traffic. ;) And smaller bike engines are really easy to work on too! I ended up taking a mechanics class at Merton College (SW London) which was great but it was expensive.

I want to say so much more but I’ll read the rest of your blog to see how this story develops first.

By: Russell

Russell — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 13:23:18 +0000

Cars? Are those the things that are either in my way or in danger of veering into me when I’m on my bike? I don’t think I like them. :(

By: Viktoriya

Viktoriya — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 21:12:55 +0000

In reply to Rainicorn. Yes, exactly! I spent some time with a manual over the last few weeks, and it finally let me wrap my brain around what a clutch is and how it's supposed to behave. My clutch control improved startlingly over the period; my instructor asked suspiciously if I'd been taking lessons with anyone else...

By: Viktoriya

Viktoriya — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 21:11:37 +0000

In reply to Pet Jeffery.

We never did anything remotely like that in D&T at school, we mostly just made stupid wall ornaments that immediately broke. I am quite excited to get all dirty, to be honest!

I of course plan to strip the entire engine down while wearing a lovely tea-dress and a pearl necklace. Well, it was either that or some sturdy over-alls, and the book has taught me the error of my ways…

By: Pet Jeffery

Pet Jeffery — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 18:49:05 +0000

In reply to Rainicorn. You mean that cars aren't monstrous killing machines?

By: Rainicorn

Rainicorn — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 17:03:56 +0000

This sounds like a really good idea. I passed my driving test on the fifth shot, haven’t driven very much since then (3 years ago), and have a HUGE fear of running someone over. Learning some of the mechanics of the car seems like an excellent way of overcoming irrational fears surrounding driving: you’d maybe start to look on it as a vehicle that you have mastery over, rather than a monstrous killing machine…

By: Pet Jeffery

Pet Jeffery — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 13:13:54 +0000

I never learned to drive, either, and always find it heartening to discover that other adults lack the skill. During the 1980s, I allowed myself to be bullied into taking driving lessons, and hated them. Now, aged 64, I find it comforting to reflect that nobody is likely to think that I should learn to drive. At 29, Viktoriya, you may lack that comfortable assurance.

I’m reminded of something from when I was around 29 years old (I’m talking of the mid 1970s). I had a period of looking at army, navy and air force recruitment ads. It wasn’t that I wished to join the armed services, but that I wanted to know the maximum age for joining. Seeking to gain an assurance that, soon, even in the event of a sanity meltdown that would make me wish to join, growing too old would save me.

By: Pet Jeffery

Pet Jeffery — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:49:45 +0000

I see that “Essential Car Care for Girls” not only has a pink cover, but that the woman depicted is wearing a short skirt, seamed tights and stilettos. Crumbs! I assume that the book is intended for a female readership. Are purchasers supposed to identify with the woman on the cover? I assume that you, Viktoriya, aren’t thinking of adopting such an outfit for your engine-building enterprise.

Good luck with it. The nearest I came to building an engine happened at school. Someone gave the school an old engine which, we were assured, would be available for teaching us the basics of mechanics. First though, the engine needed to be be put into a presentable condition. The job assigned to me was cleaning out the sump, which is a horrible task. Having cleaned out the sump, I never heard mention of the engine again. Perhaps (for all I know) it was installed in the science teacher’s car. I hope your experience is better than mine.